Free Web NovelChapter 1488: The crypt of dreams (2)
"Why do you want it?" Yang Qing asked as he tilted his head slightly. "Especially with all the trouble it brings?"
"This is Master’s home. And it is my home now," Li Gang said firmly. "Why would I leave it when it needs me the most?" he added with resolve.
"If it is to serve in its time of need, you do not need to be the head to do that," Yang Qing said gently. "You can still do that from your current post. So why be the head?" he softly added. Li Gang fell silent.
"Given everything you have endured to reach where you are, I can understand why you would feel it would be a shame not to try for it. You have likely endured more than your competitors. You have had to do more to reach this point. With all that effort and sacrifice you’ve made, why wouldn’t you try for the head of the Vast Blue? After all you have suffered and given, surely you have earned as much right as they have," Yang Qing continued.
"In your shoes, I would feel and think the same," he said, his eyes clear, showing his genuine sincerity and admiration for Li Gang’s resilience. "You have more than earned it, Li Gang," he added softly.
"But just because you have earned it, and, in my humble opinion, even have the talent for it, having all those qualities does not automatically make you suited for it," Yang Qing said gently.
"Why? Because I am not one of them?" Li Gang’s tone had more bite than he intended, though he did not shrink back as he glared at Yang Qing.
"Yes," Yang Qing softly said. "You could sacrifice half your life, and they still would not truly accept you as one of their own. All they would see is a member of the Li clan coming to steal their inheritance, and no amount of effort, sacrifice, or achievement would ever erase that from their minds.
If the price for acceptance were abandoning your name and completely severing all ties with your family, would you do it?" Yang Qing asked.
Though Li Gang did not answer, his firm eyes and clenched fist more than gave his reply. He would rather die than give up his name and abandon all ties attached to it. A moment later, he turned to Han Bai, looking guilty and overwhelmed by a multitude of emotions.
"If you were the type to discard it, you would be unworthy of being my disciple," Han Bai said.
"Who you are... that person we have grown to admire, his character and the essence of his being, was nurtured by the Li Clan. You can no more deny them than you can deny yourself," Meng Song said softly from the side. "You are Li Gang, and you should never be ashamed of it. We are not," she added, smiling affectionately at him, her hand reaching out to ruffle his hair.
After she was done, Yang Qing continued, "For some of them here, accepting you as the next head is no different from asking them to abandon their identity. The difficulty is the same as asking you to abandon yours."
"Li Gang," Yang Qing said, "part of why you want it is to preserve your master’s legacy, is it not?"
"Yes," Li Gang softly replied as he looked emotionally at Han Bai and Meng Song. "It is for them. I want to protect what they have given their lives for," he added as he continued to look at them.
"What if your presence here endangers that legacy?" Yang Qing asked, his question prompting Li Gang to shift his attention back to him.
"What do you mean?" Li Gang asked.
"What do you think of Owner Fan Jie?" Yang Qing asked meaningfully. frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓
"He loves the Vast Blue just like the other founders, and he is a great merchant with many admirable qualities," Li Gang answered, as though reading from a jade slip.
Though his mouth said one thing, his expression said another. As skilled as he was at masking his true thoughts, even he could not truly hide the discomfort that Fan Jie’s name evoked in him. He might not have noticed it himself, but Yang Qing did. He noted the faint spike in Li Gang’s spiritual qi when Fan Jie was mentioned, and how Li Gang’s hand went taut, like a drawn bowstring.
"He may be all that," Yang Qing said, "but he is also a very dangerous individual." He spoke slowly, with added emphasis on the words "dangerous individual."
"What do you think he would do to you if you continued to make yourself a contender, or worse, if you actually started gaining serious traction in your pursuit?" asked Yang Qing.
"He wo—" Li Gang was well on his way to giving his diplomatic reply (that Fan Jie would not do what Yang Qing was hinting at) when he was cut off by a response from Han Bai.
"He would kill you," Han Bai curtly interjected, prompting a surprised look from Li Gang. "And brutally at that," he added in his even tone.
"What happens if you die, and at his hands no less?" Yang Qing added softly. Without giving Li Gang room to reply, he continued, "Once the Li clan finds out how you died, how do you think they will react?"
"Surely he would not go that far!" Li Gang said, paling in disbelief. Part of why he had dared to try for the head was because some part of him had operated under the belief that the worst that could come of it would be expulsion from the company. He had never imagined his life was in serious danger.
Yes, Fan Jie frightened him, and Li Gang knew the man loathed him and wanted nothing more than to cut him down. But he had never thought Fan Jie would actually go through with it, on account of his relationship with Han Bai. And even if Fan Jie chose to ignore Han Bai, surely he could not ignore Li Gang’s family.
His family might not be on the same level as the Vast Blue, but the sect they were allied with surely had enough weight to make even the supposedly insane Fan Jie reconsider his actions. Yue State was comprised of thirteen sects, and of those thirteen, seven had peak-stage Palace Realm experts. Among those seven was the Twin Moon Sword Sect, to which the Li family was attached.
The Twin Moon Sword Sect had only one subsidiary organization: the Li clan. Their relationship ran deeper than master and servant; they were more like siblings, given that one of the Li clan’s ancestors had saved the life of a sect master of the Twin Moon Sword Sect. Countless Li clan members were also members of the sect, with one of his grandaunts serving as a seventh-stage Palace Realm core elder.
If he died, it would not be just the Li Clan that came calling. The Twin Moon Sword Sect would be at the front, leading the charge. As crazy as Fan Jie was, Li Gang had never believed he would invite such a calamity merely for the satisfaction of beheading someone he loathed. free𝑤ebnovel.com
"Surely he would not," Li Gang repeated.
"There is nothing Fan Jie would not do," Meng Song sighed. "Gang’er, do not underestimate someone who has nothing left to lose and has only vengeance and bloodthirsty anger to sustain him. He would not hesitate to take your life. For him, he would rather see it all burn to the ground than have it end up in the hands of..."
"An outsider," Li Gang said bitterly, finishing her sentence.
"Our legacy is not the Vast Blue, you know," Meng Song said gently as she took one of Li Gang’s hands and cupped it in her own. "It may have been once, but it has not been for a while," she added, looking around the room with a mournful smile.
"Not for me. Not for him," she softly said, gesturing toward Han Bai with a nod of her head. "And not even for Fan Jie. Lai Bingwen might be the only one who still cares for it. But when we are gone, I wonder if it will still hold much meaning for him," she said softly before bringing her gaze back to Li Gang.
Smiling wistfully, she said, "As the days draw closer to the end, I have found that the things I once cared about greatly, I no longer do. And the things I did not pay much attention to, or did not hold as dear, I now care for deeply."
Her hands moved from Li Gang’s hand to his face. "You said you wanted to travel all over. Explore other merchant-led territories like the Golden Bamboo Pavilion, the White Rose Pavilion, the Gold Earth Bank... How about we do it? You, me, and that old oaf. Let us travel around for the few years we have left. And maybe," she paused, "if we are lucky, we will find someone who meets your picky tastes, and before we go, we might even get to hold your child," Meng Song said longingly.
"How about it, Gang’er?" Meng Song gently asked as she cupped Li Gang’s face.
"It is better than remaining in this crypt filled with nothing but anger, jealousy, and regret. It is suffocating," Han Bai added from the side. "Li Gang," he said, his tone now much gentler, "there is more life out there for you than in here. Please do not let this old man carry even more regrets," he said tenderly.
"And Meng’er is right. I would not mind seeing your child and telling him what a destiny weaver his father once was," Han Bai said, showing a rare teasing smile. "And if we are still there, we can even be present not only for the birth of your child but also to watch them grow. We could even lend a hand to your merchant company. Just do not give us too much work. We are retired."
Li Gang’s lips trembled as he was overwhelmed with emotion.
